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Product Reviews By User
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Pretenders
Pretenders (1980) 
Gold; Limited Edition - Steve Hoffman version
 Many deep mastering faults with this trainwreckIt's missing sound effects. One song is not at the correct speed. It's got a fair bit of compression. Hoffman has disavowed it and admits it's a mess. Avoid it, AF and Hoffman are the gang that can't shoot stright.
Submitted by a reviewer (Toronto, Canada) 9/22/2009 |
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Doors
Soft Parade (1969) 
Gold; Remastered
 Not bad, has been compressed, dubious musical valueComparing waveforms (on his own site, quickly deleted by censors) shows that Hoffman used compression on this remastering, or that the compression was on whatever digital copy he mastered from. It doesn't sound bad, but the advertising claims are flat out false. Not a great Doors album, this one is an oddity at best, a failed experiment with a few good songs and the rest..well...
Submitted by a reviewer (Canada) 9/22/2009 |
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Pretenders
Pretenders (1980)
Gold; Limited Edition - Steve Hoffman version
Now Known To Be a Botch JobHoffman has now admitted that this remaster is a botch. It is missing original sound effects and is compressed. Virtually a certainty that it is not from the original masters, and another engineer was brought in to add the effects digitally to a digital master. Hoffman has pretty much disavowed responsibility for this latest mess and suggests people send their discs back to Audio Fidelity. Shame.
Submitted by a reviewer (Canada) 9/22/2009
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Doors
Morrison Hotel (1970)
Don't order yet, screw-up alert!!Apparently Hoffman nor Audio Fidelity have the good sense to actually listen to the digital file before it gets manufactured, this CD is now known to have digital noise and clicking due to a faulty digital file. Take a pass until, and if, it gets re-manufactured properly. Another Hoffman mess.
Submitted by a reviewer (Canada) 8/18/2009 
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Deep Purple
Deep Purple In Rock (1970) 
Gold
Good, but as usual, not all is at it is made out to be...This must stand as the best version currently available. However, a few doubts still remain. First, the usual deceptive/misleading "From The Original Master Tapes". The credits show "CD Prep by Kevin Grey" which is odd - Grey is a vinyl guy primarily. Was it that only Grey was allowed to get the master tapes due to the issues with Hoffman? Did he digitalize the tape and then Huff mastered from a digital copy? No doubt, the facts will never be clear. Second, the smiley face EQ applied here to get the sludgey sound of In Rock to come to life is quite apparent - bass is pumped up, and the highs jump out. Some elements of digititis appear, particularly on the high end, and although this version certainly has much greater clarity and definition that any that precede it, there is a hardness and a bit of coldness to it also. So - a high recommendation, as it clearly outdistances every prior digital version. But as seems to be typical of Hoffman lately, the sound is still very digital - unlike the beautiful analog-like sound MFSL has been consistently producing.
Submitted by a reviewer (Toronto) 7/30/2009
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Linda Ronstadt
Heart Like A Wheel (1974)
Gold; Remastered
Another Not From Original Masters Hoffman Messup!Not bad sounding at all, but obviously mastered from a digital source as it has that 'sound' of digital that in inescapable. Clear, full, sizzle of digititis on top, a good remaster from digital but could have been SO much better if Hoffman were allowed to get the true masters. I wish a company like Mobile Fidelity, that IS able to get master tapes from record companies (majors don't have to worry about getting the tapes back, or getting back damaged tapes where MOFI is concerned). 2 Stars due to the deception on being from original master tapes.
Submitted by a reviewer (Toronto, Ontario) 6/2/2009
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Band
Band (1969)
Gold; Remastered
Disappinting, likely not from original master!It is very doubtful that this remastering is direct from the original master tapes, and it sounds it. The booklet is silent as to source, instead relying on the mastering engineer's name. It is a very good remaster, but the artifacts of digititis are very much evident - sizzle on the highs particularly the cymbals, and although there is great clarity and impact, the revived AF mastering style is somwhat clinical, not at all like the long gone DCC style. Not bad, but no reason here to upgrade.
Submitted by a reviewer (Canada) 4/29/2009
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Alice Cooper
School's Out (2009)
Gold
Not bad, but not great eitherThis remaster sounds ok, but I doubt the original masters were used. Although it sounds quite good and better than the standard CD, it does still have some hardness and sibilance on the top end and has somewhat of the typical digital sheen to it, unlike, say, MFSL remasterings that sound very analog.
Submitted by a reviewer (Canada) 4/21/2009
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Cars
Heartbeat City (1984)
24K Gold
Botched remastering, very disappointing!Total botch job, very amateurish. Not only is the HDCD coding defective resulting in pops audible during the fades, the spaces added between songs are not faithful to the original recording. Look elsewhere. Hopefully Audio Fidelity get their act together.
Submitted by a reviewer (Canada) 4/21/2009
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Beach Boys
Pet Sounds (1966)
Gold
Not From The Original MastersDespite the cover stating "From The Original Masters" this disc was remastered from a tape copy. It sounds good, but not at all as good as the earlier long OOP DCC gold disc. Not enough of an upgrade over the Capitol remaster to warrant a recommendation.
Submitted by a reviewer (Canada) 4/21/2009
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Deep Purple
Who Do We Think We Are (1973)
Lousy music, passable mastering...Too bad the only things anyone would license to the dubious Audio Fidelity were dogs like this. I guess given the financial history going back to DCC through failures like S&P you can't blame the industry for not taking Hoffman seriously. Anyways, a stinker from purple and typical too warm, overly tubby mastering by Hoffman designed for low-fi systems. Avoid, music lovers!
Submitted by a reviewer (Toronto, Canada) 12/18/2007
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Megadeth
Countdown to Extinction (1992)
Bonus Tracks; Limited Edition; Original Master Recording
That guy hasn't got a clue!!Another drone from the Hoffman cult rears the ugly head...this is a fabulous remastering of a serious headbanger - a sonic masterpiece righteously restored by the masters at MOFI from the artist's own remixing (and where do some couch potatos get off claiming to know the artist's intentions better than the artist - hey old guys, go out and make your own records!). Just get it and forget the people so hung up in dogma they long ago forgot how to rock. MOFI gets it!!
Submitted by a reviewer (Toronto, Canada) 12/18/2007
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